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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. When will it ________________ you to start?
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. suit — to fit
  2. cell — a phone
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. cold — not warm
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. cell — in biology
  9. bore — to drill
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. spring — a coil
  12. bore — to tire
  13. spring — the season
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. suit — in cards
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. cold — an illness
  20. suit — clothes
  21. lean — to bend
  22. spring — of water
  23. lean — thin
  24. sharp — clever

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com